Russian court finds ballet dancer guilty of acid attack

A Russian judge on Tuesday (December 3) found dancer Pavel Dmitrichenko guilty of an acid attack that nearly blinded the artistic director of the Bolshoi Ballet.

After a month-long trial, the judge said Dmitrichenko and two co-defendants had intentionally caused grievous bodily harm to the victim, Sergei Filin.

State prosecutors have asked for a nine-year prison sentence for Dmitrichenko, 29. Judge Yelena Maximova is expected to issue a sentence later on Tuesday.

The attack on the night of Jan. 17, which badly damaged Filin's eyesight, revealed bitter rivalries behind the scenes of the Bolshoi Theatre and damaged the reputation of one of Russia's most prominent cultural institutions.

Dmitrichenko has acknowledged he wanted Filin roughed up and had given co-defendant Yuri Zarutsky the go-ahead to hit him, but said he had not wanted acid to be used. He pleaded not guilty.

Reading out the verdict as the defendants sat in a courtroom cage, the judge said Dmitr